Woman official shot dead during demolition drive in Himachal
Shimla, May 1: A woman Assistant Town and Country Planner was shot dead and a labourer injured on Tuesday in Himachal Pradesh's Solan district by a guest house owner over the demolition of an illegal structure, police said.
Narayani Guest House owner Vijay Kumar allegedly fired two rounds in the air as employees began the demolition drive in Dharampur area following Supreme Court orders.
A stray bullet hit Shail Bala, killing her on the spot, a police official told IANS. Labourer Gulab Singh received a gunshot injury in the abdomen.
Sanjya Negi, a Sub-Divisional Officer of the Electricity Department, had a narrow escape.
The district administration officials were removing illegal structures in 13 hotels and resorts in Kasauli area when the crime was committed.
Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur mourned the official's killing and said the culprit would be arrested soon and acted against as per the law. "The law and order will be maintained at all costs in the state."
The Supreme Court on April 17 ordered the demolition of illegal constructions at several hotels and resorts, saying the life of people cannot be endangered for making money.
The court observed that the illegal constructions had put the city in danger, causing landslides, and ordered the demolition of such constructions.
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UP: Misled by GPS navigation, car falls into river from partially constructed bridge, 3 dead
Bareilly (UP), Nov 24: Three people died when their car fell into the Ramganga river from a partially constructed bridge here on Sunday, police said, adding that they suspect the driver was misled by its navigation system into taking the unsafe route.
The accident occurred around 10 am on the Khalpur-Dataganj road when the victims were travelling from Bareilly to Dataganj in the Badaun district, they said.
"Earlier this year, floods had caused the front portion of the bridge to collapse into the river, but this change had not been updated in the system," Circle Officer Ashutosh Shivam said.
The driver was using a navigation system and did not realise that the bridge was unsafe, driving the car off the damaged section, the police said.
There were no safety barriers or warning signs on the approach to the damaged bridge, leading to the fatal accident, Shivam said.
Upon receiving information, police teams from Faridpur, Bareilly and Dataganj police station rushed to the spot. They recovered the vehicle and the bodies from the river, Shivam added.
The circle officer said that bodies had been sent for post-mortem. Further investigation into the matter is underway.
— Bareilly Police (@bareillypolice) November 24, 2024
